Student ideological reporting in China

The creation of a deep commitment to academic freedom in China continues to be elusive. The New York Times reported how students' reports have resulted in discipline of faculty in Chinese institutions. This example demonstrates how students may lack an understanding of why academic freedom is important and how they can (or should), themselves, learn to dialogue with others with whom their political or ideological ideas differ.

Students have also become the target of Chinese government surveillance. A Chinese student at the University of Minnesota was sentenced to six months in jail for Tweets that were perceived to be critical of the Chinese government. Kris Olds, a professor at the University of Wisconsin, was reported in an Inside Higher Education article as asking, "What obligations do our universities have to provide our arrested students & their families, in cases like this, with resources for legal support & broader political support in relevant contexts here & around the world?... What is the role of formal and informal associations of universities in responding to this phenomenon, recognizing that many universities do not  have the scale of legal and area studies resources that the University of Minnesota does(?)"